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Thursday, April 17, 2014

Philippe Couillard Needs to Clean House...

There's an old saying that reminds us that a 'new broom sweeps clean, in other words new management starts by making radical changes.

There's a tradition in Quebec, that when the premiership changes, certain very senior civil servants, deputy ministers in particular, are shuffled about in order to place those more loyal to the incoming government in positions of power, while shuffling off those loyal to the previous government, to less sensitive areas of responsibility.
It isn't cruel or disrespectful and makes infinite good sense. Nobody is humiliated, those who are shuffled off are treated well and given positions which are respectful to their previous positions.

But it certainly doesn't go far enough, especially in light of the PQ's avalanche of patronage appointments, which has over the last eighteen months seen an obscene amount of PQ loyalists, party hacks and failed candidates placed in too many positions of power.

For Couillard and the Liberals, the only dark cloud on the horizon is the ominous threat of damaging revelations in relation to alleged corruption in the Liberal party.
Those revelations, if materialized would certainly sap the energy of the government, as opposition parties whoop it up in mock indignation, aided and abetted by a voracious press eager to trumpet scandal.

And so it would be perspicacious of Couillard to get in front of this possible bad news by becoming the champion of some honest reform, an effort to clean up government in some discernible and meaningful way that the public could appreciate, a definitive sign that Couillard is not Charest and is in fact the leader of a reborn and re-branded Liberal party.

To this end Couillard can demonstrate his resolve by sucking it up, and publicly ending the awarding of partisan patronage jobs, a practice which I have referred to in the past by its British slang...."Jobs for the Boys"

Despite Pauline's noisy claim during the 2012 election campaign that a potential PQ government would be somehow cleaner and more honest than the Liberal predecessor, it was but an empty slogan, a campaign promise like any other, meant to be broken, a Quebec tradition.
Upon her election, Pauline Marois embarked on an obscene orgy of partisan patronage appointments, with the early appointment of ex-PQ leader André Boisclair to the position of Quebec Delegate-General in New York, most notable.
What got the ire of the then opposition Liberals and the CAQ was that this political 'at will' position was coupled with a job in the civil service at the level comparable to a deputy-minister, complete with job security for life.
When the opposition raised a ruckus, this 'permanence' was withdrawn and Pauline, in an effort to take the heat off, set up a committee to study and recommend the conditions under which these patronage positions should be made.
That report, prepared by a committee lead by André Perrault submitted its recommendations a year later, in December 2013, a report which recommended that these appointments be made transparently, with greater emphasis placed on competence. Read the report{fr}

But Marois brushed off the report, first saying that she was too busy to read it and then saying that its recommendations were non-binding and simply food for thought and nothing more.
She told reporters that she would probably not implement its findings.
The report noted that about half of the 600 most senior positions in government are the issue of patronage appointments.

And so Philippe Couillard can truly distinguish himself by implementing the report's recommendations, that is to seriously curb political influence in the nomination of senior government employees.

That being said, this new campaign should be accompanied by a serious purge of the most outrageous appointments made by the Marois government over the last eighteen months.
I think a very public humiliation of all those appointees would set the tone of the Couillard government and would have the PQ backed up on their heels immediately, forced to defend the indefensible.

Now those appointed to the civil service cannot be fired, such is job
security in Quebec. They've got a job for life, like it or leave it.
But
those political hacks appointed to senior deputy minister positions
should be sent to a desk to twiddle their thumbs for the rest of their
days, à la Louise Marchand the disgraced ex-boss of the OQLF, who was sent packing to a
do-nothing job at the SAQ, the liquor monopoly.

All these newly-appointed civil-servants, political hacks and PQ cronies should be demoted moved into dead-end less sensitive positions.

Here is a list of some of the PQ appointment made in the first few months of the Marois government.

Click on the image to enlarge

If you are adventuresome, you can go through all the patronage appointments made by the government HERE selected by month and year.

At any rate some of these political appointments are not 'for life' as in the Quebec civil service, some for a fixed term, some actually 'at will'

The following is a list of PQ proxies that should be fired immediately by Couillard, paid off whatever is owing and publicly denounced as partisan political hacks installed in their various positions to do the PQs bidding.
Good riddance..

Andre Boisclair

The poster boy of political entitlement.
Boisclair was named Delegate-General to New York, a political position that paid $172k a year, but a job whereby the holder keeps the job at the pleasure of the government (at will.) In other words, he can be fired anytime.
That didn't suit Boisclair at all, just in case the PQ minority government was tossed from office and the new Premier, not a particular fan. How prescient was that?

And so he negotiated himself a lifetime position in the civil-service, an insurance policy in the event of a PQ defeat at the polls.
It's something that the opposition went ballistic over and when the devious plot to give Boisclair a job for life went viral, Pauline backed down and the PQ withdrew the offer of permanency.
But soon after Boisclair took the job in New York, he came under fire over some scurrilous allegations made by Jacques Duchesneau over Boisclair's cocaine use of the past, With the pressure mounting, he was forced to resign by Marois who promised him a compensatory position.
That job materialized in the form of the head of COMEX, an obscure agency that deals with native issues up north. Even after visiting the website, I cannot say for sure what the organization does, reminding me perhaps of the fictional Department of Administrative Affairs of the British political satire Yes! Minister.

The problem was that the previous president was paid a measly $82K, so the PQ topped up the position's salary by about $100,00...Yup. $100K
To put put the cherry on top, the agency is based in Quebec city but Boisclair was told he could work from his home in Montreal.Tony Soprano himself would be proud of the epic no-show job!

Nobody deserves to get the chop as badly as Boisclair, no matter what the cost, he is an utter disgrace and insult to taxpayers.
At least if he's fired and collects his salary there will be no pretense that he's contributing to society.
OUT DAMN SPOT!

Sylvain Simard

The defeated PQ candidate was handed the presidency of the board of directors of the SAQ, Quebec's liquor monopoly, even though the current president had a year left on his mandate.
The job is mostly honorific, and doesn't pay six figures but the naked partisanship is galling.
The then Minister of Finance Nicolas Marceau, brazened it out, telling journalists that he was the perfect candidate for the job.

Really?
Simard doesn't bring any business experience to the job, before politics he was a 'distinguished' Quebec nationalist writer and literature professor. He has been a PQ politician most of life until his retirement before the 2012 election.
In 1991, he argued that a sovereign Quebec would try to reduce the concentration of immigrant communities in Montreal neighbourhoods.

At any rate, the job calls for Simard to show up to just a handful of board meetings a years, where he can sleep through the proceedings to collect his $30K.
Truth be told, attendance is not even mandatory....
Appointing the 70 year old Simard to the SAQ job is as pure a patronage appointment as they come.

Nicolas Girard

From the CBC;"Defeated in the recent provincial election, former Parti Québécois
MNA Nicolas Girard has landed a plum post at the Agence Métropolitaine
de Transport, the agency in charge of transit planning for the Montreal
area.The appointment was confirmed Wednesday at the PQ government's cabinet meeting in Quebec City.

"Mr.
Girard, with all his skills, doesn't have any experience in management.
So this is exactly what the Parti Québécois had been denouncing:
partisanship over ability," Legault said.

The
presidency of the AMT carries a salary of about $170,000 a year, well
more than the basic MNA salary of $86,242 plus certain expenses. Link

Nicolas Girard, a political science graduate, is a PQ lifer, hired right out of university. During his time at the Université de Montréal he was a tireless PQ organizer as well as, what else... a student union leader.

But criticism of Girard over his absence of business experience or knowledge of the train industry is perhaps unfair.
Mr. Girard was an avid train enthusiast as a child, and was even a conductor of his very own H/O train set, immersing himself in all aspects of building and running trains.
He was also an experienced real estate mogul having played countless hours on MonopolyMonopolie, buying and selling hotels and houses successfully!

Conseil du statut de la femmeWhen the president of Quebec's Conseil du statut de la femme (Council of Status of Women) Julie Miville-Dechêne came out somewhat against the Charter of Values, saying it needed further study before a firm position be adopted by the semi-autonomous agency, Pauline moved quickly to neutralize any potential political damage that might ensue.She stacked the odds by naming four new members to the body, all pro-charter.

"The head of the Quebec status-of-women organization accused the
government of political interference after it appointed four pro-charter
members to the body, the Conseil du statut de la femme.
Julie Miville-Dechene said the nominations came just one week before
the organization was to meet to discuss the PQ's plan to forbid the
wearing of religious symbols in the public service.
In a statement issued Thursday on government letterhead,
Miville-Dechene called it her job to defend the group, which is supposed
to be non-partisan and which "has, at its heart, the interests of all
Quebecers, regardless of their origin."
She said that, until the latest nominations, half the council's members
preferred the idea of conducting some research to evaluate the impact
of the charter on women. She all but accused the government of
implementing policy on the fly. Link

The four nominations;Lucie Martineau
is president of the Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du
Québec. The day after the Charter was announced, she publicly came out
in favour of the law, saying that government employees shouldn't be
allowed to wear religious symbols.

Julie Latour is
a lawyer and ex-chairman of the Montreal bar association. In an
interview back in 2011 she explained that she flatly rejects the
concept of 'open secularism.

Leila Lesbet, is an ardent MuslimArab
feminist, originally from Algeria. She has been a staunch defender of
the Charter, making the rounds of the various TV news talk shows, to offer her point of
view.

Ann Longchamps
is deeply involved with the Association féminine d’éducation et d’action
sociale, who publicly took a position in favour of the Charter on behalf
of the organization.

The four women changed the balance of
power on the ten-women board that runs the CSP. Two positions were
vacant and two other women did not have their mandates renewed. Wonder why?

All these women need to be fired, not because they are
against the Charter, but rather because they tacitly agreed to be
political whores on behalf of the PQ.

BAPE
It took less than two months for the PQ to install two radical environmentalists to run the BAPE (Bureau d'audiences publiques sur l'environnement,) the agency that holds public inquiries looking into the environmental impact of various energy projects in Quebec.

The PQ fired the president of the agency, deemed too 'Liberal' for the taste of the anti-exploration PQ, even though he had just had his mandate renewed. That firing will cost four and a half years of taxpayer-paid salary.

The PQ then named Pierre Baril as president and as if we hadn't spent enough money, added a new vice-president Louis-Gilles Francoeur.
Both nominations were made by the then PQ environment minister, the very radical Daniel Breton.
The two nominations of liked-minded environmentalists to the agency insures that no new project of impact could ever be judged on the merits.

Both gentlemen need to be shown the door.

As for patronage appointments, it seems that it's all a question of perspective, when in government, the appointments seem fair, while in opposition they are portrayed for what they really are.
In this regard I want to draw attention to the insufferably partisan Bernard Drainville of the PQ;

"Yesterday,
the PQ Premier Pauline Marois announced the appointment of erstwhile
Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau as chairman of the board of
Hydro-Québec.
Nothing wrong here, of course. Nakedly political and partisan
appointments to Crown corporations are as much a staple in Quebec as
anywhere else. It’s a way of thanking well-connected party supporters,
currying favour with the powerful, and/or stealthily (or not so
stealthily) advancing one’s own political agenda. Call it a winner’s
perk, for both the political party and the individual
involved. Drainville must approve; he hasn’t uttered a peep about
Péladeau’s appointment.This certainly wasn’t the case two years ago, when Drainville was
righteously (and rightly) outraged at the patronage appointment of
former Bell Canada CEO Michael Sabia, that other wealthy, well-connected businessman with known ties to the government in power. Here’s the transcript of a video snippet
of Drainville’s reaction when Charest appointed Sabia as CEO of the
Caisse de dépôt et placement, the provincially controlled public pension
plan manager, in March 2009.

The reason we think [Sabia] is disqualified for the
job of CEO [of La Caisse], is because of the process by which he was
appointed. Michael Sabia was chosen by Jean Charest. There should have
been a much more open process where other candidates were examined. In
fact, the Caisse de dépot only considered one candidate, and it was
Michael Sabia. [...] It was obviously a political decision. The Caisse
shouldn’t be politicized, to become an instrument of the Premier of
Quebec. It makes no sense.

Drainville’s 2009 musings about Sabia are even more fragrant in
retrospect for a couple of other reasons. He scolded Charest for having
appointed Sabia in part because Sabia still had business interests in
Bell Canada. Drainville went so far as to say Sabia was in “conflict of
interest” because Sabia could potentially benefit financially from
Caisse decisions. Read the rest of the Story.

Couillard needs to implant a new system for public appointments and
that goes all the way to include the 600 or so public tribunal
administrators, who today are mostly appointed, not on competence, but
connections.
If you read French, here's an interesting article on the subject Link{fr}

Taking
partisanship out of public nominations would be a big step in
re-establishing credibility and Lord knows, the Liberals are going to
have to work hard in that respect, especially in the face of the ongoing
revelations coming out of the Charbonneau Commission and by the actions by UPAC.

Looking at the abbreviated list of appointments and considering the cost to taxpayers of those salaries, there is only one response: What a god awful waste of money! Most of the titles make me strongly question what on earth they do to earn $80K - $180K. The most amusing title in the short list was for Michel Letourneau: "Associate Secretary General to the Ministerial Executive Committee responsible for Native Affairs". WTF!!!! Talk about double speak with no meat in the sandwich. Considering treaties with indigenous people were negotiated on the federal level, this smacks of 'jobs for the boys'. What this guy does or doesn't do is a complete mystery and he's probably taking home $100K plus for serving coffee to the remaining members who are diligently practicing with their executive thumb twiddlers. Quebec has a history of duplicating public service positions with the Federal Government ostensibly to prepare for separation. It's time for a major culling of public nuisances and duplications that provide little to no benefit in the grand scheme of things.

Great article Editor and you're dead on. Housecleaning needs to be done starting immediately if not sooner. Dr. Couillard has his work cut out for him including those in his own party and a new bill should be introduced as to proper procedures for these appointments for all political parties in the future. That is just a start on cleaning this province up - every damn one of them is tainted in one way or another and we taxpayers shouldn't have to foot the bill for this abuse by the politicians. Out with all the crooks and let's starting running an honest province - that would be a switch from what we've put up with for the past 100 years! I can come out of retirement and there's a few asses I'd love to kick to the curb!

Who do you think will be the first PQ MNA to be arrested? There should also be plenty of dirt on Pauline Marois and her husband coming out of the Charbonneau Commission in the not too distant future, possibly leading to criminal charges.

you argument is double shit mate. first because there has not been any police search done at pq headquarters like there was at lpq headquarters nor at pq militant's houses like there has been at lpq money laudering artisans houses.

second because by answering yes but yours is also bad, when yours is not also bad, the only thing you do is aknowledge yours is bad. not a winner. well not for you.

Maybe off topic to Editor's new post, but so on target in terms of making an argument for a "United Montreal"! If Montreal is to move forward and become a city-state, this needs to happen first. Wake up people.

this guy, a quebec resident, is half way there: http://tinyurl.com/97rxmuq .

not everything he writes is true, but at least he got a few basic things right:

"...the Liberals have been an abhorrent government demonstrably overrun with corruption and overall shittiness."

"There’s also the rather frustrating issue that people who live outside of Québec and don’t speak French have basically zero access to meaningful information about the situation in Québec."

"Let’s be honest — it’s cool to make fun of Québec if you’re an anglo. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a fucking idea what you’re talking about."

"Why would anyone want Québec to be more like the rest of Canada? Fuck, move to Ontario. Everything that makes Québec great is unique to itself."

"And yet, these same people that fucking hate Québec absolutely don’t want Québec to separate. (...) mostly it just seems to be out of spite. It’s what a lot of Québecois want, and since they want it, they definitely shouldn’t have it (just like lower tuition fees!)."

"There’s also the rather frustrating issue that people who live outside of Québec and don’t speak French have basically zero access to meaningful information about the situation in Québec."

There's some truth to this, but let's be honest, it's a two-way street. Most people inside Quebec and outside are using decades-old stereotypes to talk about one another.

What you have to worry about, though, is that when the meaningful information does start to flow in both directions more and more people will realize that we really are better as one country, the sum really is greater than the parts.

@jay"but let's be honest, it's a two-way street. Most people inside Quebec and outside are using decades-old stereotypes to talk about one another."

no. it's way worse in the roc. overthere the biggest newspapers and tv shows serve a daily buffet of quebec bashing. you don't get the opposite in quebec. of course you'll get pundits who criticize the ottawa government and how it hinders french canadian emancipation, but they never attack the english character, they don't deny its past plights and they don't deny its right to self-determination.

and the poor people repeat what they get fed, what else can they do? you're not going to ask cutie003 to think for herself or start reading alternate point of views won't you?

"...when the meaningful information does start to flow in both directions more and more people will realize that we really are better as one country..."

i don't think so. right now according to you most people are ignorants. and canada is united. when people become aware and savvy, a contrasting effect is likely to occur. roc canadians will still want quebec to remain, but they may stop the bashing. french canadians from quebec, as soon as the start reading further, end up on this blog reading that no effort should be made to protect their unique culture, or end up reading a barbara kay editorial where she repeats that french canadians are racists because they forbid religious daggers in the national assembly, and they will instantly become separatists, realizing the humongous cultural gap between them and their roc mates.

There are Chinese newspapers in Toronto with bigger circulations than the National Post and they never mention Quebec. The Sun TV network often has fewer than 1000 people watching it. The truth is, outside of the Post and Sun (both owned by the same company) there is almost no coverage of Quebec unless there is something like the charter in the news. Even then, Quebec doesn't register to most people under age 50. Barbara Kay is unknown beyond a tiny circle of other 60-somethings, mostly in Montreal. If you can find five people under age 40 west of the Ottawa river who have ever heard of her, that would be an accomplishment.

We certainly need more interaction between Quebec and the ROC but I don't think you really have an accurate view or the way things are today. I have lived in five provinces (including Quebec, bilingual New Brunswick and Alberta) and there really isn't this dislike of Quebec. There is a lot of ignoring of Quebec. And I get tired of people in the ROC telling me how much they love Montreal. Enough already... ;).

Of course, a dislike of Quebec, like a dislike of the ROC, could be drummed up - and often is drummed up, but you really have to question the motives of people doing this. Why try to pull people apart in 2014, when every problem in the world is the result of people not being able to unite?

I can see where some politicians and some protectionist businesses benefit from this ongoing issue (and sometimes they come together perfectly in one place like Pierre Karl Peladeau) but I don't see how it benefits anyone else. What is the goal? You always speak vaguely of people doing "it for themselves" but you can only get part of one ethnicity out of a very mixed region to support that so it isn't working.

As I said, you're going to have to broaden the definition of "nation" to extend beyond just French-Canadians but then the problem you run into is that for everyone who isn't French-Canadian what you're offering them they already have in Canada.

So, maybe Quebec will have to go it without Montreal. If you leave out Montreal and some of the surrounding area you will probably get a yes vote for separation. And it would be almost entirely Québécois, so why not?

"I don't think you really have an accurate view or the way things are today."

really? i get my view here. i get the english canadian point of view from moderates like cutie003, montréal ville état, james wolfe, westerner, a bs argument and durham. don't you think my mates are representative of a popular english canadian school of thought?

Jay...you're new....being fake and disingenuous is pinstripes's calling card. That's why I call her pinstripes (see 'catch me if you can'). Her only reason for hanging here is to defend her broke-ass quebec brand, since we tell the truth about it. She's the poster child for trolls. If you really want to do this blog a service...take what she says and slap her silly with it...or ignore her altogether, like others do.

It's fascinating to me that after more than forty years the Quebec independence movement still hasn't seen any need to move beyond Francophones. No wonder as the world becomes more globalized young people see no reason to join the movement.

I think there was an opportunity with Harper in Ottawa for the idea of Quebec nationalism to appeal to more people in Quebec but for some reason you chose instead to double-down on negativity and alienated anyone who wasn't already a separatist.

And now you try to play coy. Too bad, I think Quebec deserves much better spokespeople.

I am not holding my breath..this is the Liberals. I mean look at their decades of past rule and you will see they have never cleaned house. Once again you are all dreaming if you think that Couillard will be any different..its the same old Liberals who once again have been rewarded for their criminal actions..bravo Quebec.

How many people here months ago kept saying.. 'oh there is no proof the Liberals did anything bad"..now we have more proof of some shenanigans and all I hear is "oh all the parties are crooked".

The reality is that the Liberals were in charge during all the crap going on which we hear about daily from the Charbonneau commission. Where were the Liberals during these 9 years??? Nothing will change..only fools think things will change by doing the same thing over and over..ie electing the same damn party. How many times do people need to be fooled by the Liberals before they learn a lesson..I guess anglos can be fooled forever as they only vote for the Liberals.

Its just so pathetic..how the anglos keep grovelling to the Liberals expecting them to change their ways and time after time they are proved wrong..yet the anglos still maintain this grand delusion that somehow the Liberals will save the day..incredible

@student: 'Mate' is British slang and you're a seppie last time I checked. A bit of a contradiction... Your ill-fated and repetative use of the term makes you sound like a three year old throwing a temper tantrum; try and be more true to your actual vocation.

I don't know why anyone would think the Liberals are more corrupt than the PQ - seriously - do you really believe that? The Liberals have been caught most definitely - but let's wait and see what happens with all of the crap the PQ were up to - why do you think it took 9 days to hand power over to Couillard? Do you think they were playing cards in those offices the whole time?Blanchet is every bit as dirty as any Liberal out there - ALL parties handed over their income taxes for themselves and their spouses - Pauline was the only one who handed a partial one for herself - and kept her husband's as far away from the public as she could get.I think she's up to her neck in shady deallings - let's not forget she called an election specifically in time to postpone testifying.Secondly - let's give Couillard a chance here - he may be nothing like the past party - he can't be responsible for everything that happened before he was Premier for God's sakes................he's promised transparency - could we wait a little before we hang him? He's all we have here...................Legault is not an option - he's a Separatist - and it would be dangerous to think otherwise.

Complicated just refuses to think that anyone can change anything except Legault who was also involved in all these highjinks. I agree - let's give the guy a chance for Christ's sake! What do we have to lose? Stop with dissing him until we see what will be done. It takes more than a week. Come on Dr. Couillard - DON'T LET US DOWN!

I agree with you, it doesn't take 9 days to turn over power. Hard to ingest 'The Iron Lady' sulked all that time. She probably was taking care of loose ends where her creepy hubby is concerned, so they could ride into the sunset free from legal hassles as civilians. She took way too long to leave and tho I am tempted to believe it was done for pure spite...Logic tells me it was something else.

Apparently she and hubby flew off the NY for 4 days or so while she re-grouped I guess. Must be nice to have the money just to FO when things get tough - that's the difference between those that have and we normal people that are "have nots". I don't have the money to just FO anytime things get rough but I sure as hell would do so especially with the shitty weather we've been having! That's exactly why we cannot allow these politicians to remove our safety net from Canada - we can't screw off when things go wrong but they will leave us all to fight the battle they leave behind. When are the seppies going to catch onto this fact? I'm starting to think there is something mentally wrong with them and they can't see over the cliff.

Brother you are pathetic Cutie. You rant and rave about paritionning this place hoping a seperatist government wins..now you are wearing the rose coloured glasses and telling me that Couillard needs a chance. I remember you also telling me there was no proof the Liberals did anything wrong..you have been drinking the Koolaid for awhile..now you tell me they are all corrupt..at least the Liberals are corrupt federalists who cant manage money worth a damn..what great comfort.. How many more years of incompetent Liberal rule does it take to convince someone like you??? How many more billions in debt..how many more stories of corruption under Liberal rule..you are totally blinded Cutie.. I dont need a year to tell me how useless Couillard will be..I will say it right now..the guy will be no better than Charest..based on the many past Liberal governments. You all say give the guy a chance..how about giving a third party one chance..you will give the Liberals infinite amounts of chance even though they have shown to be utterly useless, dishonest and immoral..but heaven forbid the CAQ gets one chance..no that is just too much. Un-flipping-believable the brainwashing you are all under..

As far as I'm concerned, if the PQ had won the election, it would have made the movement stronger to partition this province in a hurry, but as they didn't, unlike you, I am willing to give the man the benefit of the doubt and give him a chance to clean up the corruption that is rampant in quebec. I am not willing to give a man who sat back and did nothing to clean it up when he was a PQ and is still a separatist. Up until March he was on the air on CBC saying that in 10 years he would hold a referendum to take quebec out of Canada and only changed his tune when he found that he could do a lot better when catering to the minorities by promising never to hold a referendum. Two faced SOB - that's when I think of Legault. You call it brainwashing, we call it common sense as to know when there is a difference in opinion on where this province belongs and most of us on this blog believe it belongs in Canada and living by the Canadian Constitution. Why don't you give him a few months and let's see where he takes us? But NO - not you - just because he wears the "Liberal" label, you rule him out - well we do the same with Legault. An avowed separatist is not what this province needs nor wants and will continue to drag us down with their threats causing the very instability that is killing this province. You seem to be calling Dr. Couillard useless, dishonest and immoral but again there is no proof that he has done one thing wrong. And I don't even know what your complaining about - Legault got more seats than last time around so you should be happy!

All of you who think Quebec and Canada is some Lilly White paragon of justice and far removed from the corrupt politics of 3rd world dictatorships are blind and naïve. The way it's done here that's different is instead of passing the money in full view, it's passed behind the back.

Bingo! I often diss the seppies for the BS they've pulled over the years, but Ottawa allowed it. That's been the harshest realization to come by. It allowed for the stripping of basic Rights and Freedoms in this province, it stood by without intervening and it should be ashamed of itself for that. Meanwhile it meddles in foreign countries who violate civil liberties.

Good luck with that…you are dreaming if you think anything is going to change in Quebec.

The rot, corruption, slime, sleaze that is Quebec politics is everywhere from the top down and the bottom up.

Things will not change until they have to, look at Greece, Detroit, Ireland, Spain, Chicago, California…as many other, countries, cities and towns go bankrupt across the world…they changed only because they ran out of other peoples money…Banks stopped loaning them money…

Canada is broke, Ottawa, Quebec, Ontario...very high debt loads and no one in government is doing a thing about it…they are all on the take…sad indeed.

But it will end, and it will not be pretty. Its coming, people are selling their homes because of high hydro costs, high natural gas prices and more and more debt…its has to end eventually.

Lets give the guy a chance..give me a flipping break..fool me once shame on you..fool me twice shame on me..fool me 8 times is what total ignorance and insanity!!!! How many more Liberal governments does it take to convince you people that they will not change..it doesnt matter who the leader is..its the party..Charest was the saviour last time and he had much better credentials than Couillard..how did it work out with Bourassa and Johnson and on and on. Why do you people never learn your lesson time in and time out??

I think Legault would have been a hell of a lot better than the same old corrupt group that has PROVEN over and over how useless they are. We need someone who understands how the economy works..you really think Couillard has more experience than Legault in this domain..you really believe their new economic team is any better than their previous one. They still added 60 billion dollars to the debt over 9 years when interest rates were at record low levels..I think even the PQ has a better record on debt than them.

Keep believing in your fairy tales..I am sure they are really different this time..like all the other times..

The PQ is primarily responsible for that 250+ Billion $$$$$$ debt. Their continuous stupid talk of referendum and separation has held us hostage for 40 bloody yrs. Nothing has moved forward in 4 decades, BECAUSE of their idiocy. You can't eat culture and identity folks. These MAY be important but they don't feed a Family. That's the reality so pls spare us the laurels of Pauline Marois & Co. She may be filthy rich, but she and her ilk have ensured you all have remained in a financial ghetto, so pleas shut the f...up.

Exactly AnecTOTE - Complicated can mouth off all he wants but it's the separatists that have kept this province back since the beginning and it will never improve as long as they keep creating the climate they do! It is obvious what is creating this problem and totally blaming the liberals is ridiculous. Legault being in power would not change a damn thing.

Have the Liberals changed a damn thing cutie..you yourself admitted that they have done a poor job but now you are on the lets give them another chance bandwagon..how pathetic. I think its their seventh chance now since 1970..23 years of rule. They are easily responsible for more than half the debt. Stop defending them and making excuse after excuse..they are incapable of balancing the budget..I dont care who is in charge. How are the Liberals improving the climate for anglos??? The OQLF still exists under their rule..Bill 101 is still in effect..in fact the Liberals introduced the first language laws..forget about this. How about Charest musing about strengthening Bill 101. The Liberals are not going to do one thing to improve the situation for anglos like always and somehow once again you all beleive it will be different this time..its a desperate sort of fantasy world you live in. Legault is the one who could have really changed things in this province..yes he likely would have left Bill 101 in place..noneof the parties will touch it..but he knows how the real business world works. He also knows that he needs the anglophones..remember how much time he devoted to anglos in his speech as compared to Couillard..that is really telling. Couillard could barely get 12 seconds of english out in a 9 minute speech and you all really think he is some sort of saviour for Montreal..what a bunch of total fools..

Couillard stood up for Anglos and Allophones at least once in the past when he was health minister in the previous Liberal government. He publicly supported the construction of the English super hospital when some prominent Pequistes called for its cancellation.

Complicated is a self loathing anglo with a massive hard on for No Neck Legault. He wacks off to his simpleton, populist rhetoric. He probably whips himself before going to bed like Nelson Van Alden, ohhhh bad anglo, bad anglo. Complicated overlooks the fact that Couillard probably won the francophone vote and continues to bash anglos. The guy is nuts, obviously star struck.

Cocaine..well by your name what are you exactly..I am one of the few anglos which is capable of thinking critically and analytically..who is not brainwashed like you and 95 percent of other anglos. I am not an anglo who just blindly votes for the same party election after election. A party which has shown decade after decade to be incapable of running this province..a party that fiscally may be even worse than the PQ..in fact it was Bouchard and the PQ who were the only party that really tried to cut spending here. A party that has clearly been implicated in massive corruption and/or who was in power while rampant corruption was going on. The facts are there smacking you in the head cocaine but you are too drugged out to notice of course.

I am embarassed about the actions of the anglo community because they are even more guily of nationalism than most francophones. They are so blinded by their distrust of anybody who is not 100 percent federalist that they would prefer criminals running this province or incompetents running this province. They twist their words when the facts prove otherwise..they deny Liberal involvment then when it becomes apparent they then say all the parties are corrupt. I bet if there was video evidence showing the Liberals bribing people the anglos would still vote for them - it doesnt matter how much evidence is out there damning the Liberals they will still get the anglo vote..that it total insanity.

For all those who diss Legault..I will say is that he is the one who truly has not been given a chance. We know what the PQ and the Liberals are all about..we have seen their results..we have not seen what the CAQ is about..would they produce miracles..of course not..but after all the crap we have endured with the PQ/Liberals surely its time for somebody new.

Cocaine obviously has problems with math..due to his hobby..lets see 25 percent of Quebecers voted for the PQ, 23 percent for the CAQ and 41 percent for the Libs. Of the 41 percent for the Liberals I would say a full 10 percent were anglos and allos. Hence 31 percent of the vote were francophones supporting the Liberals..10 percent allos/anglos for the Livberals..about 55 percent of the francophones voted for the PQ, CAQ and the QS..I doubt many anglos voted for these parties..a small percentage. So it seems to me that almost twice as many francophones voted for parties other than the Liberals. Yet I would assume about 90 percent of anglos voted for the Liberals. Its the anglos in the end who have more nationalist tendencies than the francophones..their religion is federalism even if it means placing criminals in charge.

Our religion is about saving OUR Economy complicated ....and the criminals you keep referring to ...don't threaten it half as much as Separatists do, that's the reality. You should know and understand this, since it is really not an emotional thing at this point. Right now, it is about survival, and jump-starting the Economy here. In order to do that, we have to ..at least appear to be a stable society ...on the Financial front...globally, or nice foreigners with money won't bother with us...savvy? We are well aware of the baggage the liberals come with....it is always less than any separatist past or present. THAT'S why we voted them in, we do not hold any illusions about them, gees...you're preaching to the congregation here.

Legault is NO different then the rest of them - where the hell is that white horse you seem to see him riding in on Complicated - because all I saw was a Separatist in disguise - There's corruption in all governments - world wide - Quebec is doing something about it - very few outside of this Province or Country are - let the investigations take their course............and in the meantime let's move forward.Legault agreed with far too much of the Charter - he has a mandate of Separation in 10 years - and he was one of the ones that visibly GASPED when Couillard mentioned that bilingualism is a good thing - these are facts - and these are facts that Quebec simply cannot afford to take a chance on. Companies were bailing out of this province faster than you could shake a stick - we desperately needed the Liberal party back in for Quebec's survival as a world class city. We KNOW what the Liberals are about - yes - but Complicated refuses to give them a chance. Couillard is not the sum of every past leader in the province Party leaders are individuals - some have more integrity then others ( Look at Rene Levesque and Pauline Marois if you want proof of how different they can be ) I'm betting on Couillard to be a Man of Integrity. If I'm wrong so be it - but anyone who voted for the PQ or the CAQ would have been a hell of lot more " wrong " then that. World confidence went up overnight on April 7th because of the results - for Christ's sakes - that has to be a GOOD thing. To be quite honest with you Complicated, I'm quite embarrassed for you that you don't see Legault's true colors -

He does not have a mandate to seperate in 10 years..that is pure fiction. He does not want to talk about seperation or federalism for 10 years..not at all the same thing. You keep saying I refuse to give them a chance..are you guys reading what I am saying..how many chancers are you going to give the Liberals..they have been in charge about 7 times in the past 40 years and not once have they done anything to improve things in this province..what the heck are you talking about..we have given the Liberals chance after chance after chance..I am done with being a fool like the rest of you. The Liberal party for Quebecs survival..are you flipping kidding me..this is the party that for 9 years added 60 billion to the debt..did nothing to improve our infrastructure..did nothing to improve conditions for anglos..was in charge while rampant corruption was on..hello..are you people for real. Quebec is doing something about corruption..really..wake me up when they actually do..I havent see any real concrete actions..its a way of life here..the Liberals are not the party to tackle this as they allowed it to build to huge proportions during their 9 year reign of futility. You people only see things in black and white..Legault no matter what he does or says will never be enought because he was in the PQ at one time. You prefer criminals and incompetents in charge than someone who actually has the skills necessary to fix things. Jumpstarting the economy with the Liberals..if they did such a grand job then why did they add 60 billion to the debt..during a period of record low interest rates. The Liberals are NOT the party to improve things and you are all in la-la land. Yes Legault may not be a miracle worker but I think he deserves one chance..he cant possibly be worse than the other two parties..

Complicated, first off if you are looking for a good mental health professional, let me know. Secondly, I am neither anglophone or francophone so keep your biased assumptions to yourself. Thirdly, I live in Gouin and I voted for DAVID to keep the PQ out. Forthly, I prefer a liberal majority to the xenophobia that the CAQ or the PQ offer. You‘re pretty fuckin nervy expecting a visible minority to vote for some angry white dude who is obsessed with hypothetical hijab wearing policewomen, tells Janette he understands her xenophobic feeling AND talks about how the 450 racist suburbanites no longer feel at home in Montreal. You should be ashamed of yourself.

It's the EXACT same thing - when a former Separatist says he won't talk about Separation for 10 years !!!!!!And as much as you don't trust Couillard, Complicated, I do NOT trust Legault !!!The ONLY one that said - ( over and over again I might add - at great risk in this province ) bilingualism was a good thing was Couillard - shit - I would have voted for him just for that alone ! That one sentence - those 5 little words - will do more for this province than you can imagine - they're words that open doors - and this province has been slamming doors in everyone's faces for far too long. I want them opened as wide as they can get - as wide as Toronto and New York's at the very least. Anyway - it is what it is - all this bickering back and forth about us being idiots isn't going to change anything lol ( funny how the majority of the province are idiots - and those of you that voted for the CAQ are the intelligent ones LMAO )

Yeah, Complicated blasts Couillard for being no friend to anglos but pimps out Legault, who was nodding along with Pauline when she said she was sick during the debate. I think Complicated is mentally ill.

Anglophone allophone whatever..its the same voting pattern..both groups are so paranoid about seperation that they would rather elect criminals to run the province than someone who might actually have a chance of changing things for the better. I prefer a government that actually can govern..one that can manage our finances not bankrupt us..one that walks the talk about anglo rights instead of just taking our vote then doing absolutely nothing about them..one that doesnt encourage mass corruption or does nothing about it. Oh and by the way maybe you forgot but it seems to me that the Liberals changed their opinion on the charter about five times during the past few months..waffling and stumbling so if you think they are the great defenders of minority rights then you are a bigger fool than I thought.

I am ashamed of my fellow anglos and allos who once again are voting in a corrupt, criminal and incompetent party that has PROVEN 7 times (23 years of rule) that they are incapable of running this province. Give me the CAQ anyday over these fools. By the way if you could do basic math then you would realize the greatest problem facing us now and over the next 10-20 years will be our debt and I can guarantee the Liberals will only make that problem worse. So keep believing in your fairy tales about how wonderful life will be here in la-la land..

Mentally ill..I will tell you what insanity is all about..its people doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result..ie voting the Liberals. I am not ashamed but a lot of anglos and allos should be ashamed..because once again being the sheeple they are..voted for a party that has proven beyond a doubt to be corrupt, incompetent and incapable of properly governing this province. You are totally blinded by your hatred for anybody who might have been a seperatist..thats all you care about..it doesnt matter if the Liberals are crooks, it doesnt matter that they are well on their way to bankrupting this province, it doesnt matter that they have maintained Bill 101 the oqlf..no all that matters is that they are federalist.

You talk about Couillard talking about bilingualism..I agree it was nice to see..but his 12 seconds of english in his speech..pretty sad for someone who embraces bilingualism..and he didnt even finish his sentence in english..he looked embarassed to speak in english..and you think he will be the great defender of anglos and allos..you are the mentally ill and you all should be ashamed for being such utter fools..

Come back in a year and tell me how great Couillard is..by then your rose coloured glasses will be looking pretty transparent..

Legault was on the YES bus in 1995. He'll be on the next YES bus too. He parroted the PQ on Bill 14 and Bill 60 with slight modifications. He, like the PQ and QS beat the same tribalistic drum when he stated Montreal was Anglacizing (?) in the last debate. He's a poster boy for your run of the mill Snake Oil salesman. I'll take the trained brain surgeon and staunch Canadian over him any day.

So you really believe that people never change their mind about anything their entire life? If one was a seperatist then you are always a seperatist. If one votes for a certain political party then you will always vote for that party. Do you honestly believe that people never ever change their mind about things. Even Lucien Bouchard has moved away from it..and he was not a seperatist back in the early 1990s..people evolve..things change.

Its amazing to me that you will at the same time paint Legault as a life long seperatist even though he has clearly evolved yet at the same time you think the Liberals have somehow changed even though they have over and over shown that they always make the same mistakes. Where is the logic in your thinking..there is none..its just emotions.

I will take a businessman who created a succesful company any day over a doctor. The economy and the debt are the real problems and Legault is in a much better position to understand how wealth is created..we need that..

"So you really believe that people never change their mind about anything their entire life? If one was a seperatist then you are always a seperatist."

Complicated...in your heart of hearts do you actually believe that Legault has abandoned his separatist tendencies? C'mon, you know better. What he's trying to sell and who he is fundamentally may be mutually exclusive, but then the fact that he's "playing" robs him of his credibility. It would be ok if he weren't so obvious about it.

Ed here. Been in hospital 45 days. Out temporarily,, seven more to go.

Odd how the election worked out exactly how I said it would all along. I am a student of people and demographics..You need to be a sensitive person to do this. I sensed the mood of people everywhere I went and I knew from this what was coming.For posting this information II was called dotty and made out to be a deranged old man by ignorant would be pundits who thought nobody could possibly know more than them. I forgive your unkindness and insults and wish you all the best. Ed

We were all getting worried about you ED..glad to hear you are out of the hospital. Well yes you were right about the Liberals winning big but I think you underestimated how well the CAQ did.. But I cant help but be disappointed that the Liberals werent held to a minority..I think that would have been the ideal result. the Liberals have had far too many chance to change Quebec and they have never improved things here..just more debt..more corruption..more empty promises..Couillard is just another in a long line of Liberals who will once again disapoint..Quebec needs to go through a Greek style crisis before it wakes up..its coming..another few years..

Good to see your okay, Ed. I have to admit, I thought you were crazy to call a Liberal majority win a month before the election, but who would've thought it would actually go that way! Remember though, it had nothing to do with Couillard or the Liberal platform, it was simply people voting against the PQ. You could have had a rubber duck running against Marois and her bunch and people would've voted it in!

The sad part is we won't be much better off this time around, not unless Couillard makes some extreme and drastic changes. However much like Bourassa, Johnson and Charest though, it's just going to be the same old story as before. Corruption, language laws, neglected infrastructure, failing health care, businesses and tax payers fleeing the province. All while Quebec sinks lower and lower.

Let's hope you're wrong Apple - willing to give the man a chance to see if he can turn things around. Will take awhile but if he does enough talking about the right things, perhaps he can pull it off. I think that most people are fed up with the same old, same old so perhaps the time is ripe.

Scrolling up and down looking for Complicated refuting my claim that Legault is an angry white xenophobe. So Complicated you will live with xenophobia for the 0.00000000000000000000001% chance that Legault might actually change something for the better?You see I haven‘t even mentioned separation or referendum, the man disgusts me even though I believe he won‘t call one.

Bang on Cocaine...bill 101 will still be law, and the language Nazis departments will still get paid a tone of money to harass English speaking people, business, signage…...same old, same old…poor Quebec, the liberals are a mess...the whole province...what a mess…

Cocaine - Legault certainly showed a lot more passion than comotose and heavily scripted Couillard did. I dont believe that makes him an angry white man. it makes him more of a human being in my books. By the way it was Legault and the CAQ who watered down Bill 14 so much that it died. It was the PQ who dreamt up this whole Bill 60 to create division within Quebec..the CAQ had to support it to some extent because many francophone quebecers are for it..thats politics. Even the Liberals waffled on the issue for a few months..still not sure where they stand..so are they really any better? He sure as heck is not getting any support from anglos and allos so he had to maintain his base.

You can talk all you want about the charter and seperation but the real pressing issue is our debt. We need someone who understands the real economy..Couillard is a life long bureacrat who has never created a job in his life..and we all know the Liberals record..its horrible when it comes to the economy. I want someone in power who can fix the main issue in Quebec..believe me nobody will care about the charter in a couple years when we are having a fiscal crisis..

Lol Couillard is a life long bureaucrat, you must have missed the part of his bio that says brain surgeon. Now you are just resorting to making up lies. At least when I bash Legault I use facts and his own quotes.And yes I would rather someone who is comatose as opposed to a xenophobe who loses his mind at the idea that a muslim hijab wearing woman might want to become a police officer. I was actually disappointed by Couillard‘s non answer, I wish he would have had the courage to confront that xenophobe with the fact that it wouldn‘t have been a problem.Hmmmm let‘s see, before his return Couillard spent 5 years sitting in the Liberal party compared to Legault‘s 11 years in the PQ. He really has nothing other than Air Transat a few swear words, cheap populist that he is.See the difference between you and I Complicated is that I see the Liberals as they are, the best of a rotten lot, 4 years of peace, whereas you see your beloved Legault as the knight in shining armour who will fix all the provinces woes.

Oh brother..you are hopeless really. Couilard as all doctors are paid by the government..yes I am sure he is an intelligenet man but does he know anything about running a business and kickstarting an economy. Legault only was the co-founder of one of the more successful airlines in Canada..no big deal according to you.

I see you love that word..xenophobe..when the facts get in the way then you accuse Legault of being a racist..real classy. I am looking at the big picture..and I am looking at the facts..the facts are hitting you on the head but you refuse to acknowledge then because of your obsession about the charter. The facts are that the Liberals have been in power for 23 years of the past 40..they have done nothing to improve things in this province..they have increased the debt as much or more than the PQ..they have done nothing about anglo rights..they have done nothing to make this an attractive place for business..they have presided over mass corruption which they have been involved in and on and on..these are facts. Instead you obsess about one statement Legault made about a hijab..give me a flipping break..there is a heck of a lot more important issues than your worries about a charter.

I am a realist and I certainly do not expect Legault to fix all the problems but I think he will move us in the right direction. The Liberals just give us more of the same..and as noted above we all know how their rule has turned out over the past 43 years. Your fixation on his comments about the charter will become meaningless in a few years when Quebec goes bankrupt..the pressing issue is going to be a government running out of money..the Liberals have shown over and over they are horrible money managers..

Brother, if you think state sponsored xenophobia is “no big deal“ that‘s really sad. Bad things have happened in history with help from people like you. And my obsession with the charter? Good one, the charter was my first experience with political activism, I gave my time and energy to the cause while you probably just sit on your computer all day and post here and jerk off to Legault videos.I see your beloved Legault is already pushing the people of quality (Deltell) in his party to the back and flirting with PQs. Oh wait you‘ll make an excuse for him again, probably one that involves the liberals.

We should be skeptical and weary of all political parties in this province.

Why won't Legault admit that bilingualism is important in Life? Why didn't he give the "we need you" speech to Anglos and Allos BEFORE the election? It came after and it was too little too late. I suspect he didn't cause he didn't think we would be a real factor. I also suspect it was a landslide for Liberals, because many of the immigrants who had never bothered to vote before chose to show up and vote this time, and many from the groups the charter was targeting.

Legault just wants power for some self fulfilling bucket list item. it is very obvious he will say whatever people want to hear just to get there, and if I have to be honest, he never did strike me like that sort of individual, I was starting to like him till I saw him on the debates and saw how pro-charter he was. He has no problem either hindering people's Rights and Freedoms. But on the Language front especially, Couillard (not a fan yet), had the balls to admit a very unpopular thing, to all Quebecers, and unilingual ones especially, English is important and bilingualism is an asset. He had the courage and conviction to speak the truth about specific realities in this province and that was huge as far as I'm concerned.

I will admit that I was somewhat disapointed with Legault trying to score political points via the charter. But then again so did Couillard..first he came out strongly agains the charter and then he started saying that parts of it were fine and then for awhile nobody knew where he stood on it..so again is Couillard really such a defender of anglo and allo rights.

Lets face it..80 percent or more of the population and whether we like it or not many of them liked the charter or at least a fair bit of the charter..perhaps out of ignorance and fear but thats the reality. Any politician who wants to get elected is going to have to skate somewhat around the issue which Couillard and Legault were doing.

To me the CAQ and Liberals were forced to take some sort of stand to show they were defending the quebecois identity and you cant totally fault peope for having some concerns here. This word xenophobia that Cocaine keeps throwing around is showing his hysterics here..it seems to me we should all be able to have a rational conversation about what is and what is not acceptable in our country. I am getting a little tired of immigrants coming here and telling us that we are being unreasonable by protecting our identity. I somehow dont think people in many Middle eastern countries would take too kindly to us going there and acting as we do here..so lets calm down a bit here. I have been in France many times and there are many many problems with the arab/north african population who have not assimilated well at all in many cases. is that xenophobia or racism..its reality..and you can flip out all you want cocaine but there is a certain amount of truth within the idea behind the charter.

But its clear that the main purpose of the charter was to create winning conditions for another referendum..this was to pick a fight with Harper and to create divisions within Quebec.

I once again go back to my main point..in my opinion the charter is a distraction..its a minor issue compared to the debt crisis we are going to experience in a few years. Nobody will care about the charter if we start seering massive unemployment and the government is forced to make massive cuts..it will have to happe at some point whether or not we start now or later. The later the government waits the worse the cuts will be..and meanwhile everyone here is still debating about language and the charter. The only party I see who has any hope of addressing the debt is the CAQ..they are the only ones proposing serious cuts and the only one who has a leader who undertands business. The Liberals have had 23 years to show us the way and they have utterly failed..the facts are clear. Watch the debt go up over the next few years..

@complicated: Summarizing what you wrote: I'm not a racist or xenophobe, but I'm going to say some really racist and xenophobic things.Why follow in France's footsteps when we've seen the failure of their polices with regards to immigration? Why not follow the examples set by England or the ROC?

The election is over. Quit whining that your team lost and complaining that the group that was just sworn in hasn't done enough yet.

Montreal has been held hostage by all quebec governments for 40 yrs, it's time this changes. Montreal needs to be recognized for what it is, an international metropolis not an back-bush hillbilly quebec town, the same rules do not apply. We must start with exemption from sad silly laws that have kept it in the dark ages for 4 decades, discouraging business and impeding economic progress. Special status for Montreal is a start in the right direction to allow it to rediscover it's true footing for a prosperous future. Montreal deserves this, Montreal is owed this. Let's all part-take!

It's nice to know there are some constants in life, namely that many separatists, when you get right down to it, are passionate, emotional people who do have the courage of their own convictions.

Now I'm not one who agreed with all the French pundits (and Lisee, and others) who said that Quebecers were afraid of another referendum and so voted Liberal. But I do think that PQ supporters are easily discouraged, and as such are actually the least likely to vote.

Here's Alec Castonguay with the riding by riding breakdown of where PQ supporters just melted away.

"It's nice to know there are some constants in life, namely that many separatists, when you get right down to it, are passionate, emotional people who do have the courage of their own convictions. "

Yes Kev...let them fill their tummies with that. How's this instead, WE...the rest of us....don't give a flying kite about seppies anymore, we won't be concerning ourselves with the crappy losers who have stunted our growth for decades. The rest if us want and need to jump start the Economy.. you've heard of that, right Kev? The Economy? It's that little necessary thing that needs to prosper in society, so you don't become homeless. The seppie mindset has deprived us...Montreal anyway, of our greatness for 40 years, we are done with the guilt and the debt for something we never owed. AND please spare us the praise for seppies, they've been nothing but a bloody burden, a Cross to bear, for this country, and especially for the rest of us who have had to carry their sorry asses for years and years.

We are sooooooooooooo F....inggggg done.....Got that Kev? Now off into seppie oblivion you go too. Get Lost.

If Quebec is serious about jump starting the economy, about bringing business back to Quebec, about opening the province to success…it has to repeal Bill 101. its as simple as that, allow the English language to be equal again and we will come back. If not, forget about Quebec moving forward, getting out of debt, helping the economy…it won’t happen, we will not come back,we will not invest in Quebec...

This has nothing to do with the seppies, this is a liberal problem as well. Repeal bill 101 or the province will continue to go downhill. This is at the route of the problem and I don’t see anything changing with this ‘new’ government, nothing at all.

I agree with you, but it will be another 40 years before this province looks itself straight in the mirror and faces the truth about the huge harm language laws have caused it. Since it won't happen anytime soon, we'll have to hope for special status for Montreal and exemption from bill 101, so that at the very least, it can pull itself out from under the economic tsunami it's in.

James Wolfe - Precisely. That is why I've said, whether the Liberals or PQ won the election, we'd still lose and the province would continue on a downward spiral to the bottom.

...UNLESS (and a very big UNLESS), the Coulliard's Liberals shock the hell out of us all and repeal Bill 101 and the Language Police. HAH.

Forcing Bill 101 on business in Quebec is about as anti-business and damaging as saying, "hey instead of dealing with monetary currency, we in Quebec will ONLY deal with fur, beads and fish". Yeah, see where that gets you on the world economy. Yep, Quebec through the eyes of the rest of the world appears that backwards.

Yes the law caused problems when it was first passed -- but that is because it was expressly designed to cause problems and be challenged in court and get people outraged.

But the notion that our economy will be kickstarted by allowing every business to operate and file paperwork exclusively in English is just magical thinking. You may as well go to China and demand to fill out all your paperwork in English. Or Mexico. Or Germany...

In case anyone missed it, yet another example of QUEBEC brutal violence and cruelty towards animals. And 80% of Canada's veal products are produced in Quebec. Will Coulliard pass laws to bring Quebec up to the same level as the rest of North America in terms of animal protection laws? Yeah riiiiight.

I've said it so many times before, but everything we discuss and debate here, THIS is the root of it all. This explains why it exists. The corruption, the racism, the hate, the disregard for basic human safety and human rights, ALL OF IT, it all stems from this. If people in Quebec can abuse animals without any care or remorse, it speaks volumes about who and what they are, and WHAT they are capable of!

There is also a great deal of cruelty involved in the slaughter of horses, and Quebec is just about the only location in Canada or the U.S. where you will find horse meat on the shelves of grocery stores.